Join us for a fun and interactive training that explains the benefits of focusing on the process rather than the product in art. We will have a chance to experience some art and discuss how what we learned applies to our programs. Group discussions will allow participants to hear about other’s art experiences with children. Pictures and videos will highlight a variety of art projects. Participants will leave feeling a renewed sense of inspiration about offering open ended art to the children in your program!

Research supports the notion that young children have an intuitive sense of informal mathematics. As an early childhood educator, you play an important role in bridging children's informal understanding of mathematics with daily experiences offered through your program's learning environment. This training takes a chronological view of mathematics development in children, beginning at birth and going through Kindergarten. It will offer specific teaching suggestions for each age group based on the Early Learning Guidelines for Infants and Toddlers, the Guidelines for Preschool Learning Experiences, and the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Mathematics.

Learn about risk and resilience in young children and their families, including approaches and strategies. Content includes: impact of trauma on young children, child development and on attachment relationships; strategies and guiding principles for supporting young children who have experienced trauma; sources of support and appropriate referrals; and self-care. The training also includes a parent speaker (or video tape) who shares her own trauma history and how it affected her experience as a parent.

Presenter: Cindy HutchesonAudience: GCC, FCC & Public School PreschoolCore Competency: 3. Partnering with Children and Families Category of Study: 6. Children with Special Needs, Birth – 16 YearsTHIS TRAINING IS FULL5. Individualizing Curriculum in Early Childhood Programs

This CEU course will provide foundational information in curriculum planning, including how to adapt curriculum to meet the needs of individual children as well as the group. Through discussion, individual reflection, and small and large group activities, you will discover how to plan developmentally appropriate curriculum that supports the growth of all children and respects the diversity of children in your program. Focus will be on working with children with diverse temperaments and learning styles, as well as from diverse backgrounds and languages.

Presenter: Marcia FarrisAudience: FCCCore Competency: 5. Learning Environments and Implementing CurriculumCategory of Study: 3. Curriculum for Early Childhood SettingsTHIS TRAINING IS FULL 6. Improving Communication Skills and Reducing Conflict in Your Life and Program Setting

Effective communication skills can be helpful in the workplace, at home, and any other aspect of your life! This training will offer a brief introduction to some of the common communication problems we may experience on a daily basis, and looks at how we can develop our skills in order to increase our assertiveness, and become better listeners and speakers. We will explore effective ways to reduce and resolve conflict, and apply these techniques using some typical early-childhood scenarios. Participants will discover how specific strategies may improve relationships with co-workers and with the families with which we work.